PEDIATRICS Vol. 74 No. 5 November 1984, pp. 876-878
This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow P3Rs: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when P3Rs are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow E-mail this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My File Cabinet
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via CrossRef
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Gross, M. D.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Gross, M. D.

Effect of Sucrose on Hyperkinetic Children

Mortimer D. Gross M.D.1

1 From the Department of Psychiatry, University of Illinois, The Medical Center, Chicago

A hyperkinetic boy and his mother were found, by blind tests, to be hypersensitive to sucrose, with manifestations of irritability, hyperactivity, and headache. Neither glucose, lactose, or saccharin produced any behavioral changes. To ascertain whether this was common in those with hypersensitivity to sucrose, 50 hyperkinetic children, whose mothers had volunteered that they "knew" or were "sure" that their hyperactivity and general behavior were much worse when they had eaten foods containing sugar (sucrose), were tested in a blind experiment with a challenge dose of a glass of lemonade containing 75 g of sucrose compared with lemonade sweetened with saccharin; this was done three times. No differences could be found in their behavior after ingesting sucrose compared with saccharin. Hypersensitivity to sucrose can lead to adverse behavioral changes, but this hypersensitivity appears to be an uncommon condition. If suspected it can be tested for very simply.

Key Words: sucrose • hyperkinetic syndrome • attention deficit disorder • minimal brain dysfunction • diet and behavior

Submitted on February 1, 1984




This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 NEJMHome page
S. J. Schoenthaler, A. Samuels, W. G. Crook, A. Brenner, C. T. Furukawa, L. K. Mahan, M. L. Wolraich, S. D. Lindgren, P. J. Stumbo, L. D. Stegink, et al.
Sugar and Children's Behavior
N. Engl. J. Med., June 30, 1994; 330(26): 1901 - 1904.
[Full Text]